EU Environment Commissioner's “I will if you will challenge” for Earth Hour 2013

Smoggy roads can be enough to make anyone scream, but they have also inspired Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik to take a “I will if you will challenge” and offer to write a song and perform it on stage in front of 1,000 people.

Speaking in a Youtube video released on 25 February, Potočnik said that if 1,000 people stopped using their cars for at least one week, he would compose and sing a ditty in front of the same number of people.

The idea is part of the WWF’s Earth Hour initiative for 2013, which aims to persuade people to turn their lights off on 23 March for an hour in order to save energy, and raise awareness about the need for environmental protection.

“By lending his support to the WWF’s Earth Hour initiative, Commissioner Potočnik joined the millions of people around the world who are already showing their concern for the environment. In the coming weeks, we are expecting other key EU leaders to join and publicly demonstrate their support” commented Tony Long, Director of the WWF European Policy Office.

“Earth Hour has always been more than a ‘lights off for an hour’ campaign - We are now seeing some extraordinary environmental outcomes on the way to achieving a long-term vision for a sustainable planet. In 2013, Earth Hour changes from an annual event towards a continuous movement driving real actions for change."